Dua means invocation - to call out - and is an act of supplication, meaning asking or begging for something earnestly or humbly. For Muslims, it is an act of worship in which we ask Allah for His forgiveness and mercy, to grant us His favours and answer our requests.
The Qur’an is the word of Allah, revealed by our beloved Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah Be Upon Him) as guidance for humanity. It is permanent and unchanging, its words permanently etched into eternity.
A dua is our conversation with our Creator, the relay of our thoughts and words to Him. We can use any words, ask for anything, for good in this life and the Hereafter. We can ask for ourselves, our friends, families, strangers, those in need, for the Ummah and humanity.
It is more than just a channel of communication or a ritual, however. Dua has been described as the essence of worship, for by turning to Allah we are affirming that He alone has the power to grant or deny our wishes, desires, hopes and ambitions.
A Hadith recites that the Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah Be Upon Him) stated: “Dua is [that act which is worthy of being called true] worship” (Tirmidhi)
Rather than treating it as a ritual that is performed almost robotically without thought or meaning, the foundation for dua is the faith that our Creator hears our every word, knows our every thought and every deed that we have enacted. Even if we cannot express the words, our hearts will reveal what we are trying to say.
The Qur’an states: “Your Lord says, ‘Call on Me and I will answer you’.” (Surah Ghafir Qur’an 40:60)
It was reported that Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), one of the closest Companions of the Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah Be Upon Him), said: "I am not worried about whether my dua will be responded to, but rather I am worried about whether I will be able to make dua or not. So if I have been guided (by Allah) then (I know) that the response will come with it)."
We can make dua an integral part of our lives, not just part of our formalised rituals of worship such as salah. It can range from saying ‘Bismillah’ (in the name of God) from waking up or before tackling any deed to reciting emotional and impassioned verses and expressing our deepest and heartfelt desires and wishes.
By making our dua, we also accept that the outcome may not always be apparent to us. Our duas can be accepted and we get what we have asked for. Our dua may be granted but the reward or benefit is in another form, or the result may not be obvious in our lifetime but we receive rewards for it in the Hereafter.
One of the simplest acts of this submission is to seek His forgiveness for our transgressions, known as istighfar. The dua for istighfar can be one word:
Astaghfirullah (I seek forgiveness of Allah).
Another short and popular dua among the multitude that one can use for istighfar is:
Astaghfirullaah aladhee laa ilaha illa huwal Hayyul Qayyoom wa atoobu ilayh
(I seek Allah’s forgiveness, there is no God but He, the Ever Living and the One who sustains, and I turn to Him in repentance.)
While a dua can be said at any time, scholars have recommended that to maximise its benefit there are certain etiquettes that should be practised. These include:
Having been given all the means for salvation and redemption in the form of dua, it is imperative that we make use of this most priceless of assets, not only at certain times but throughout our lives.
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